This Is Where It Gets Complicated...

What makes fish fraud so prevalent is that once a fish has been cleaned, it’s hard to tell what type of fish it is. This makes it nearly impossible for consumers to be completely sure what species of fish they’re buying. This, in turn, leads to a phenomenon I’ve coined fish fraud: the misbranding of seafood products. When tilapia is sold as red snapper, or skate wings served as scallops: That’s fish fraud.

So how long has this been going on?

I think this has probably been going on for ages. It’s basic economic fraud. In order to sell a product, one’s prices must be competitive. But set the prices too low and there’s no net income. So why not cut a few corners and turn a greater profit? It’s the same philosophy behind watering down sports drinks: they taste the same and are sold for the same price, but cost less to produce. So seafood venders try to pass off an inexpensive fish like tilapia as something that can be sold for more.

In 1988, the FDA published “The Fish List”, a set of guidelines for appropriate labeling of fish. In 1993, the list was expanded to include invertebrate species and renamed “The Seafood List”.

“The Seafood List” has each species of fish listed under four identities: the scientific name, the common scientific name, the market name, and the vernacular name.

Let’s look at an example. In a restaurant, you ordered the Sand Dab. This is a vernacular or slang name. A Sand Dab is not a species of fish. What you ordered could be Limanda ferruginea, or Yellowtail Flounder. Those are the fish’s true scientific name and common scientific name, respectively. The FDA approved market name for this fish is Flounder.

Let’s review:
Scientific Name = Common Scientific Name = Market Name = Vernacular Name

Limanda ferruginea = Yellowtail Flounder = Flounder = Sand Dab

So how do you tell exactly what you're ordering? Unfortunately, I doubt your waiter will know whether your Sand Dab is Yellowtail Flounder or American Plaice. But when consumers demand the resources to make more informed decisions about their seafood choices, those resources will be provided. Changes will be made.

For more information about sustainable seafood, check out the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program and the Seafood Choices Alliance.
FishBase is the premier marine database. It cross-references all of a species’ various names.
To see the most common cases of fish fraud, check out this website by the FDA.

Sources: All linked websites
http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/GuidanceDocuments/Seafood/ucm113260.htm